SAN DIEGO – The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County fell for the ninth consecutive day, having dropped 15.7 cents since hitting a record high, according to figures released Thursday by the Oil Price Information Service.

The average of $4.473 is 1.6 cents lower than the figure released early Wednesday and 14.9 cents lower than last month. However, the average is $1.343 higher than at this time last year.

The average hit a record high of $4.63 June 19.z